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Sacramento Hunger Commission: September 2002 Minutes

1. The meeting was called to order by Kevin Bond, Co-Vice Chair.
2. Minutes from June (revised) and July unanimously approved M/S (Sharon Eghigian/Ernie Brown)
3. Reports and announcements – CropWalk is October 13, 2002, starting at 1:00 from the west steps of the State Capitol. Sponsored by an interfaith coalition, this is a 10k walk to raise money for international (75%) and local (25%) food security programs. A group from the HC plans to participate, if you're interested or have questions contact Eunice at 332-8732
   
   National 5 a Day Week Pledge cards were distributed and California's Largest Salad Bar was held on 9/23. California Nutrition Network organized this event to get the word out to California restaurants to make healthy options available to the community when they eat out. These signed pledge cards were presented to the California Restaurant Association. The question was raised: “How realistic is 5-a-day for low-income residents in Sacramento?” A goal of the HC is to make this more possible
   
   Summer Food Program 2002 -- Shana McDavis-Conway, Staff, reported that the City of Sacramento's Summer Food Program was completed on August 30th. Overall, the number of sites increased this summer but participation rates were down in July. The preliminary participation rates for August are higher than August last year, but lower than July 2002. Peggy Roark and Commissioner Kevin Bond reported the City Councilmember visits by Hunger Commissioners and staff were very successful this year, but we should start them earlier next year.
   
   Other Announcements -- Bill Maynard, Commissioner, announced the Sacramento Area Community Garden Coalition meets tonight, September 17th at the Coloma Community Center. New school gardens are developing at David Lubin Elementary School (3535 M Street) and at a private school off Florin Road. If you are working towards or have interest in beginning a school garden, contact Bill Maynard about the Western Growers grant opportunity. There are also $1,000 fertilizer grants available. Janet Talsky reported that the WIC Office in Del Paso Heights was approved to move forward with its Stone Soup garden. They were given funding for the next 3 years. The updated Children's Report Card is out.
4. Hope Awards luncheon, November 21 -- As Commissioner Judie Wilson was not able to attend the meeting, Peggy Roark gave an update on the progress of the Hope Awards committee. Ms Wilson has agreed to chair the committee that is planning this year's Awards Luncheon to be held at KVIE Television Studies Community Room (2595 Capitol Oaks Drive) and catered by Enotria. Nominations do not need to fit into specific categories and will be accepted until Friday, October 18, 2002 at 5 PM. Some themes that have been considered for the luncheon: Thanksgiving and thankfulness; foreshadowing children's hunger issue and Davis's recent task force around School Breakfast Programs; could work in conjunction with November 3rd release of California Health Indicators Survey results (data on hunger and food insecurity). The next committee meeting is Thursday, October 13 from 11:30-1.
5. Policy Update – State --Please see September 17, 2002 Legislative Update. Sharon Eghigian reported that there will probably be a budget deficit for the next several years. One bit of good news: the Governor approved the change from monthly to quarterly reporting for the Food Stamp Program.
   County and City-- The Commission discussed the impact of the Utility Users tax measure (Measure G) at the county level. DHA Customer service, training, food stamp program staffing and clerical support may be affected as well as county clinics. Gary Little also talked about the impact on city services if Measure T is approved, and answered the obvious question of why the language is so confusing (Vote No if you want the tax to be continued.) After a brief discussion, the Commission voted in favor of supporting the city and county Utility Users' Taxes: (Yes on G, No on T) (Brown/Villalobos)
6. Emergency Food Providers in Sacramento: Issues, Challenges, Sources of Support (this is the first part of a 2-part series)
   
   Commissioner Ernie Brown from Senior Gleaners and Nina Nelson from the Sierra/Arden Neighborhood Food Closet gave presentations on their programs and addressed questions from the Commissioners.
   Senior Gleaners is the 7th largest Food Bank in the country and is a member of America's Second Harvest. Twenty-five million pounds per year from 3 major sources (70% from local donations and local grocery stores and 30% from National Second Harvest truckloads) is distributed to agencies in 18 different counties. One major challenge is that less and less food is becoming available. National donations are down 7 % while hunger has increased over the same period. Senior Gleaners is a privately funded all volunteer organization which serves about 90 charities in 18 counties in Northern California. Sierra/Arden Neighborhood Food Closet primarily serves residents in the 95825 and 95864 zip codes. This is a high/moderate income neighborhood with pockets of poverty. They receive food from Senior Gleaners and Foodlink. Residents can pick up food every 30 days, or more often if there is an emergency. The Food Bank will set up a Saturday pick up time if necessary. Sierra Arden is supported by a group of churches in the neighborhood. The average family visiting the closet has 4.5 family members. Challenges: Sierra Arden is run by volunteers, and there is a high turnover due to burnout. Many of the volunteers are also at risk for hunger.

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